BEIJING, Aug. 27--Hosts China crushed Britain 10-0 in the opening game of the world softball championship on Sunday to launch the first test event for the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
After a slick opening ceremony at the purpose-built Fengtai softball field, China got the best possible start to their world championship campaign and underlined their determination to break the American stranglehold on Olympic gold, Reuters said.
The 2008 Olympic softball tournament will be the last for at least eight years. Softball first featured as a medal sport at the Atlanta Summer Games in 1996 but last year was removed from the list of events for London 2012.
A large and enthusiastic crowd of nearly 10,000 packed into the larger of the two impressive stadiums on a sunny Sunday morning in the south of Beijing to watch the opening ceremony and cheer the home side to victory.
China, whose women took silver at the Atlanta Games and were fourth in Athens in 2004, have brought a young side to the 16-team championship under the guidance of coach Michael Bastian but were still far too strong for Britain.
Bastian has been looking to add more power to a Chinese game that in the past has relied on good pitching and speed in the short game.
“I saw our team play with a lot of emotion today,“ said Bastian.
“All the Chinese fans in the stands helped us go to another level. I hope we can continue to use the home advantage in the rest of this tournament.“
The 10-day championship also acts as a qualifying tournament for the 2008 Olympics, with the top four teams securing a return visit to Beijing in two year’s time.
China qualify automatically as hosts and Bastian is well aware that expectations will be high in 2008.
“When I came here to China my goal was hopefully to build the best team in the world,“ he said.
Craig Montvidas, coach of a Britain team with more modest ambitions, thinks Bastian might succeed.
“I definitely they think they can challenge in 2008, what they need most of all is experience and that’s what they’re getting,“ he said.
“They’re not there yet but they definitely have the potential.“

Inter Milan captain Javier Zanetti holds up the trophy after defeating AS Roma in the Italian Supercup soccer match at the San Siro Stadium in Milan, northern Italy, Saturday. (Reuters Photo)

ROME, Aug. 27--An extra-time free kick by Luis Figo completed a stunning rally by Inter Milan on Saturday, the Italian champions coming back from 3-0 down to defeat AS Roma 4-3 in the Super Cup.
The former World Footballer of the Year struck from 30 meters five minutes into extra-time.
Earlier, Roma raced 3-0 up inside 34 minutes thanks to two goals from midfielder Alberto Aquilani and one from Brazilian winger Mancini, reported Reuters.
But Inter hit back with two goals from Patrick Vieira and one by Hernan Crespo.
Figo then made it 4-3 before Roma had Cristian Chivu sent off six minutes later.
Inter’s defensive frailties became apparent in the 13th minute when a mix-up between goalkeeper Francesco Toldo and defender Javier Zanetti allowed Mancini to score.
Aquilani combined with Francesco Totti to make it 2-0 before Inter’s static back four allowed the unmarked Aquilani to turn a low cross past Toldo.
Vieira gave Inter hope when he headed in a 45th-minute free kick before substitute Crespo edged in front of his marker to nod Dejan Stankovic’s cross in at the near post.
The scores were level after Vieira ran on to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s pass and fired the ball into the roof of the net from close range with 16 minutes of normal time left.
The Serie A season starts on Sept. 10.

LOS ANGELES,
Aug. 27--Bob Estes birdied the final hole to tie fellow American Will MacKenzie for the lead after the Reno-Tahoe Open third round in Reno, Nevada on Saturday.
The four-times PGA Tour winner completed a four-under-par 68 to finish on 19-under 197 at Montreux Golf and Country Club, Reuters said.
Estes, whose last Tour victory came at the 2002 Kemper Open, started the day one stroke clear after establishing a tournament record for 36 holes at 15-under 129
MacKenzie, playing his second season on the world’s most lucrative tour, held the outright lead for much of the day after reeling off five birdies in six holes from the fourth.
He reached the turn in five-under 31 before parring the next nine holes to finish level with Estes.
Tour veteran John Cook, the 2001 champion, returned a 69 to sit third at 15 under, one ahead of Swede Daniel Chopra, after a joint best-of-the-day 64.
Americans Jeff Brehaut (65) and Kevin Sutherland (66) were tied for fifth at 3 under with Australian Jason Day (67.(
American world number 65 Brandt Jobe, the highest-ranked player in the field, shared 32nd place at seven under after returning a 70.
The PGA Tour’s biggest names are competing at this week’s $7.5 million WGC-Bridgestone Invitational at Firestone Country Club in Akron, Ohio.

Valencia's David Silva (r) and Betis' Enrique Romero fight for the ball during their Spanish First Division soccer match at Valencia's Mestalla Stadium, Saturday. (Reuters Photo)

MADRID, Aug. 27-- Striker Fernando Morientes celebrated his return to the Primera Liga by scoring the first goal of the Spanish season, guiding Valencia to a 2-1 win over Real Betis on Saturday.
The former Real Madrid player, who returned to Spain in the close season after a spell in England with Liverpool, smashed the ball into the net from 15 meters in the 32nd minute, Reuters said.
Betis equalized with a well-taken header from Valencia old boy Xisco early in the second half but centre back Raul Albiol secured victory for the home side when he converted a corner in the 61st minute.
The majority of teams do not play until Sunday, with Real Madrid starting out under new coach Fabio Capello with a home game against injury-hit Villarreal.
Barcelona begin their quest for a third successive league title when they travel to Celta Vigo on Monday.
Sevilla, who swept past Barcelona 3-0 in the European Super Cup on Friday, host promoted Levante on Tuesday.
Valencia, fielding the same team that beat Salzburg 3-0 in midweek to qualify for the group phase of the Champions League, made a sluggish start against a Betis side shorn of leading players Joaquin and Ricardo Oliveira.
Spain international Joaquin has been involved in a tortuous transfer saga which is likely to end with a move to Valencia on Sunday.
Brazil striker Oliveira was in Italy for a medical ahead of his expected move to AC Milan.
Betis had the better of the early exchanges but Valencia hit them on the break, Morientes firing home after former Arsenal player Edu had carved his way through midfield.
The visitors levelled when Xisco sent a header spinning into the top corner after a fine pass from left back Enrique Romero.
Albiol grabbed the winner when he whipped a half-volley inside the far post.

BANGKOK, Thailand, Aug. 27--Reigning Olympic and world champion Pawina Thongsuk of Thailand has pulled out of next month’s World Weightlifting Championships in Santo Domingo, local media reported on Sunday.
Pawina, who won gold in the 75kg class at the 2004 Athens Olympics, has withdrawn from the competition to focus on the Asian Games in Doha in December, the English-language Bangkok Post reported.
The 27-year-old was named the 2005 Best Female Weightlifter by the International Weightlifting Federation after she set three world records to win all three gold medals in the 63kg class at the World Championships in Doha, Reuters said.
The records also made her the first female lifter in over a century to set world marks in three different weights.
The World Championships take place from Sept. 29 to Oct. 6 and will be the first qualifying event for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.

Nikolay Davydenko

NEW YORK, Aug. 27--Russian Nikolay Davydenko warmed up for the US Open in the best possible manner as he beat Argentine 10th seed Agustin Calleri 6-4 6-3 to win the New Haven event on Saturday.
The second seed broke once in the first set and twice in the second as he wrapped up victory in one hour, 21 minutes, reported Reuters.
The win gave Davydenko his third title of the year, but his first on hard courts.
“It was good to play not so long matches, like one hour something, two sets,“ Davydenko said.
“Now I am happy. It is my third title already on hard courts--I have not won too many tournaments on hard.“
Davydenko has never been beyond the third round at the US.Open but said the victory was a big boost to his confidence going into the final grand slam tournament of the year.
“For my mind, to win the tournament here, I felt good already from the first round so I hope I play good (at the US Open).
Calleri rued a few missed chances to break in the first set.
“I had three or four break points, but he served very well,“ Calleri said.
“He didn’t give me a chance to break him. He just played very well on the important points.
“Obviously I would have loved to win the tournament. On the other hand, I felt very good here.“

BEIJING, Aug. 27--Two years ahead of the 2008 Summer Games, Beijing on Sunday will open its first Olympic venue for the women’s World Softball Championships--the second test event after the Qingdao regatta.
For several months, authorities in the Chinese capital have repeatedly insisted that the city will be ready on August 8, 2008, for the opening ceremony of the world’s biggest sporting event, AFP said.
This month, they got a boost from hosting two major sporting events--/the World Junior Athletics Championships in Beijing and the international regatta in the coastal city of Qingdao, 500 kilometers to the southeast.
Liu Qi, president of the Beijing Olympic organizing committee (BOGOC) and a member of the Chinese Communist Party’s politburo, said he was hoping to see the same success with the softball tournament, which runs through September 5.
“We must pay as much attention to the softball championships as we will to the Olympic Games,“ he said as he inspected the softball stadium at Fengtai in southwest Beijing--one of 11 venues renovated for the Games.
The stadium, which covers 15,570 square meters can accommodate 13,000 spectators. The renovation work, finished last month, took a year to complete.
A total of 31 sites across Beijing will see Olympic action in 2008--11 of them are new and eight others are temporary facilities.
A total of sixteen teams will compete for the title, with three-time Olympic champions Team USA and current world champions Japan among the favorites, along with Australia and Canada.

SAPPORO, Japan, Aug. 27--Japan’s Kaori Yoshida made a winning debut with the 2003 world bronze medalist Masako Chiba finishing at a lowly 11th in her last career race at the Hokkaido marathon on Sunday, AFP said.
Yoshida made a break away shortly before the 15-kilometer mark against fellow Japanese Chika Horie and Tomoko Shimokawa before a long stint running solo to clock two hours 32 minutes 52 seconds in the women’s event.
Her compatriots Mai Tagami came in second in 2:38:52 and Sachiyo Yamada third in 3:39:15, while meet record holder Chiba timed 2:48:58. Shimokawa was fifth in 2:43:01 and Horie stopped running at the 27km mark.
The men’s race was won by defending champion Tomonori Watanabe, who posted his second career victory with a time of 2:17:50 to lead a Japanese 1-2-3 finish with Mitsuru Watanabe and Yusuke Kataoka.
Kubota’s time was 2:17:53 and Kataoka 2:18:16.